Earth-moving machines for subgrading highways

ABSTRACT

Earth-moving machine embodying a trusswork for spanning highways, and the like, with an earth-handling unit movable back and forth along the trusswork for simultaneously loosening, picking up and discharging off from the highway subgrade material.

111111001 States harem [72] Inventor Murray A. Rowe Canton, S. D014.[21] Appl. No. 865,674 [22] Filed Oct. 13, 1969 [45] Patented Dec. 21,11971 [73] Assignee 1K 81 R llndustries lnc.

Canton, S. Dali.

[54] EARTH-MOVING MACHINES FOR SUBGRADING lillGlHlWMIS 6 Claims, 8Drawing Figs.

[52] US. Cl 37/108 R, 37/190 [51] 1111. C1 1150215/00 [50] 1 10111o1fSenrch.... 37/108, 190, 1l2;94/45; 198/36, 9; 214/10 [56] ReferencesCited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,306,476 2/1967 McMillan 37/190 X 3,298,4941/1967 Pfeilschifter 198/36 X Primary Examiner-Robert E. PulfreyAssistant Examiner-Clifford 1D. Crowder Attorney.1ohnston, Root,Ollieeffe, lfieil, Thompson &

Shurtleff ABSTRACT: Earth-moving machine embodying a trusswork forspanning highways, and the like, with an earth-handling unit movableback and forth along the trusswork for simultaneously loosening, pickingup and discharging 00' from the highway subgrade material. 1

PATENTEU EH32] 1971 3; 6282M SHEET 2 [IF 3 NVVE/VTOR.

MURRAY A. ROWE earth-moving machine 1 is in completely assembled form,as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the rollers 19 on the end plates 17 and 18are disposed in position to be supported by, and ride along, the tops ofside rails 20 and 21 disposed on opposite sides of the trussworlt 6, tothereby support the carriage 7 for movement longitudinally of thetrussworlt 6.

Each of the end plates 17 and 13 on the carriage 7 also has twooutwardly projecting holddown rollers 22 disposed below respective onesof the upper rollers 19 in vertically spaced relation thereto. Therollers 22 are so disposed on the end plates 17 and 13 that when thecarriage 7 is supported on the side rails 211 and 21 of the trusswork 6by the rollers 19, in the aforementioned manner, the rollers 22 on theend plates 17 and 13 are disposed in abutting engagement with the lowerfaces of the side rails 29 and 21 in position to hold the rollers 19downwardly against the side rails 29 and 21.

The earth-handling unit 3 embodies an elongated auxiliary carriage 23,which is substantially rectangular in shape, and embodies two elongated,substantially parallel side rails 24 and 25. Two end rails 26 and 27extend between and are mounted on respective opposite ends of the siderails 24! and 25 in substantially parallel relation to each other. Twocross braces 23 and 29 extend between the two side rails 24 and 25 inparallel spaced relation to each other and to the end rails 26 and 27.

Two supporting frames 31 and 32 are adjustably mounted on and supportedby the cross brace 29 and end rail 27, respectively, FIG. 2. Thesupporting frames 31 and 32 are identical in construction, and, as shownin FIG. 3 with respect to the supporting frame 32, they aresubstantially square in shape, and each embodies horizontally extendingupper and lower rails 33 and 34 disposed in parallel relation to eachother, and two vertically extending, substantially parallel side rails35 and 36 extending between and mounted on respective ends of the rails33 and 3 1. Two rollers 37 and 35 are mounted on and suspended from thelower face of the upper rail 33 of each of the supporting frames 31 and32 by suitable mounts 39 and M1, respectively, and, similarly, tworollers 41 and 52 are mounted on the upper face of the lower rail 34 ofeach of the supporting frames 31 and 32 by suitable mounts 63 and 14, asshown in FlG. 3 with respect to the supporting frame 32. The rollers 37,33, 11 and 42 on each of the supporting frames 31 and 32 projectinwardly therefrom toward the other of the supporting frames 32 and 31,respectively, as illustrated in FIG. with respect to the roller 33, fora purpose which will be discussed in greater detail presently.

The supporting frames 31 and 32 are adjustably supported from theauxiliary frame 23 for vertical movement upwardly and downwardlytherefrom by two elongated plates 45 and 46 mounted on and projectingfrom each of the top rails 33, and slidably mounted in channel members17 and 13, respectively, mounted on the cross brace 29 and the end rail30, respectively. A hole 69 is formed in each of the channel members 17and 13 in alignment with a corresponding hole 50 formed in therespective portion of the cross brace 29 or the end rail 27 on which thechannel member 417 or 68 is mounted, as shown in FIG. 7. Two openings 51and 52 are formed in each of the plates and 56, in vertically spacedrelation to each other, FIG. 7, the openings 51 and 52 being of the samediameter as the openings 19 and 50, and being sized to receive a pin 53therein when they are disposed in alignment with the openings 19 and 50,the pins 53, in such instance, extending through the openings 49 and 10and through whichever one of the openings 51 and 52 are disposed inalignment with the respective pairs of openings 19 and 50. It will beseen that, with this arrangement, the supporting frames 31 and 32 may beselectively supported in lowered position, when the pins 53 are disposedthrough the upper openings 51, and in raised position, when the pins 53are disposed through the lower openings 52 in the plates 45 and 16. Suchvertical adjustment of the supporting frames 31 and 32 relative to theauxiliary frame 23 is desired for a purpose which will be discussed ingreater detail presently.

Movement of the supporting frames 31 and 32 upwardly and downwardlyrelative to the auxiliary frame 23 may be effected by any suitablemechanism, such as, for example, handwheels 541, each having a threadedshanlt 55 threaded into the cross brace 29 and the end rail 311,respectively, with the lower ends of the shanlts 55 rotatalbly securedto the top rails 33 of the corresponding supporting frames 31 and 32, asshown in FIG. 3 with respect to the supporting frame 32. With thisconstruction, when it is desired to raise or lower the supporting frames31 and 32, the pins 53 may be removed therefrom, and the handwheels 5 1may be rotated to thereby cause the desired vertical movement of theplates 15 and 66 relative to the brackets 17 and 413, respectively. Whenthe supporting frames 31 and 32 have been raised or lowered to theproper position to dispose the openings 52 or 51, respectively, inalignment with the corresponding openings 19 and 511, the pins 53 may bereinserted into operative position with the aligned openings so that thesupporting frames 31 and 32 are supported by the respective pairs ofpins 53, together with the handwheel mechanisms 5 1-55.

The supporting frames 31 and 32 form an integral part of the pickup unit111, and are disposed at respective opposite ends thereof. The picltupunit 111 also includes an elongated rotary unit 56 which extends betweenthe supporting frames 31 and 32 and is rotatably supported by therollers 37, 33 11 and 12 thereon, as will be discussed in greater detailpresently.

The rotary unit 54 includes two circular shaped end rings or annularmembers 55 and 56, and three intermediate rings 57, 53 and 59 disposedin parallel, axially aligned, spaced relation to each other and to theend rings 55 and 56, FIGS. 2 and 1, All of the rings 55-59 have the sameoutside diameter. The rings 55 and 56 are identical in construction,each embodying a large annular portion 60 from which a smaller annularend portion 61 projects. The rings 57-59 are also all identical inconstruction, preferably being of uniform cross-sectional size at allportions thereof.

in the rotary unit 5 1, the end rings 55 and 56 are disposed at therespective opposite ends thereof, with the end portions 61 projectingaxially outwardly from the body portions 611, FIG. 1. A plurality ofelongated blades 62 are secured to and extend between the peripheries ofthe body portions 60 of the end rings 55 and 56, FIGS. 2 and Al. Eachof'the blades 62 have two arms 63 and 66 disposed at an angle to eachother. The arms 63 extend from the periphery of the body portion 611 ofthe end ring 55 across the outer peripheral face of the adjacentintermediate ring 57 to the outer peripheral face of the centrallydisposed intermediate ring 513, the arms 63 being secured to these facesof the rings 55, 57 and 55 by suitable means, such as, welding. The arm64 of each blade 62 extends from the outer peripheral surface of thebody portion 611 of the end ring 56 across the outer peripheral surfaceof the adjacent intermediate ring 59 to the outer peripheral surface ofthe intermediate ring 55, and terminates at its inner end in abuttingrelation to the corresponding inner end of the arm 63 of that blade 62,the arm 6 1 of each blade 62 being secured to the aforementioned outerperipheral faces of the rings 56, 511 and 59, respectively. Preferably,the arms 63 and 6d of each of the blades 62 are equal in length, andextend from the end rings 55 and 416, respectively, to the intermediatering 55 along the shortest, smooth arcuate path across the intermediaterings 57 and 69, respectively. The rings 55-59 and the blades 62 may bemade of any suitable material, such as, for example, steel, and,preferably, the blades are equally spaced around the rings 55-59 withthe points defined by the engagement of the arms 63 and 63 thereofpointing in the same direction around the circumference of the rotaryunit 55. Thus, it will be seen that the rotary unit 541 comprises aplurality of parallel, axially aligned spaced rings 55-59 having blades62 disposed in a serpentine, substantially V-shaped path on the outerperiphery thereof.

Each of the blades 62 is substantially T-shaped in transverse crosssection, FIG. 3, having a head portion 65 mounted on and supported by abody portion 66 in outwardly spaced rela- EARTH-MOVING MACHINES FORSUBGRADING HIGHWAYS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relatesto earth-moving machines and, more particularly, to machines which areparticularly well adapted for subgrading operations, and the like.

It is a primary object of the present invention to afford a novelearth-moving machine.

Another object is to afford a novel subgrading machine.

Machines for use in subgrading operations, and the like, have beenheretofore known in the art. However, such machines that have beenheretofore known have commonly had several inherent disadvantages, suchas, for example, being large and cumbersome in size; being complicatedin construction; being difficult and complicated to operate; not beingcapable of accurately affording a uniform level to a surface beingsubgraded, when such was desired; not being capable of accurately anduniformly affording a predetermined slope or a predetermined crown to asurface being subgraded, when such were desired; or not being efficientand reliable in operation, and the like. It is an important object ofthe present invention to overcome such disadvantages.

Another object of the present invention is to afford a novelearth-moving machine which is particularly well adapted for subgradingoperations in the construction of highways, and the like.

Another object is to afford a novel earth-moving machine which isoperable in a novel and expeditious manner to remove subgrade materialto a predetermined level.

Yet another object of the present invention is to afford a novelearth-moving machine wherein the parts thereof are so constituted andarranged that the slope and contour of a surface being subgraded therebymay be selectively controlled in a novel and expeditious manner.

A further object is to afford a novel earth-moving machine wherein theparts thereof are so constituted and arranged that the dirt or othersubgrade material to be removed by the machine in a subgrading operationis loosened, picked up and transported away in a novel and expeditiousmanner.

Another object is to afford a novel digging unit for an earth movingmachine for loosening subgrade material.

Another object of the present invention is to afford a novel pickup unitfor an earth-moving machine for picking up subgrade material.

Yet another object is to afford a novel discharge unit for anearth-moving machine for discharging or transferring away subgradematerial.

A further object of the present invention is to afford a novelearth-moving machine which embodies a digger unit, a pickup unit and adischarge unit constituted and arranged in a novel and expeditiousmanner for effective concurrent operation.

Another object is to afford a novel earth-moving machine I for use insubgrading operations on highways, and the like,

which is so constructed that it can span a highway and be movedlongitudinally therealong to simultaneously loosen, pick up anddischarge off from the highway subgrade material throughout the width ofthe highway.

Another object is to afford a novel earth-moving machine which ispractical and efficient in operation and which may be readily andeconomically produced commercially.

Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent fromthe following description and claims and are illustrated in theaccompany drawings which, by way of illustration, show the preferredembodiments of the present invention and the principles thereof and whatI now consider to be the best mode in which I have contemplated applyingthese principles. Other embodiments of the invention embodying the sameor equivalent principles may be used and structural changes may be madeas desired by those skilled in the art without departing from thepresent invention and the purview of the appended claims.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings FIG. 1 is a cross section ofa roadway showing an earthmoving machine, embodying the principles ofthe present invention, in side elevation and disposed in operativeposition over the roadway;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, detail sectional view taken substantially alongthe line 2-2 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, detail sectional view taken substantially alongthe line 3-3 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the pickup unit shown in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary, detail sectional view taken substantially alongthe line 55 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary, detail elevational view taken substantiallyalong the line 6--6 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary, detail sectional view taken substantially alongthe line 77 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of a modified form of pickup unit foruse in the earth-moving machine shown in FIGS. 1-7; and

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary, detail sectional view taken substantially alongthe line 99 in FIG. 8.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS SHOWN HEREIN An earth-moving machine 1,embodying the principles of the present invention, is shown in thedrawings to illustrate the presently preferred embodiment of the presentinvention. The machine 1 is shown in FIG. 1 disposed in operativeposition over a roadway 2 in position to remove the subgrade 3 so as tolower the level of the roadway 2 from the level 4 of the surroundingterrain to the desired level 5.

The machine 1, shown in the drawings, includes an elongated frame ortrusswork 6 which is adapted to longitudinally extend transversely ofthe roadway 2 being subgraded, and is adapted to be moved longitudinallyof the roadway in a direction transverse to the length of the trussworkby any suitable means, either mechanically or by hand. The trusswork 6,preferably, is of the same type as that shown in the S. P. Bidwell US.Pat. No. 3,208,361, issued Sept. 28, i965, and is described in greaterdetail herein.

The earth-moving machine 1, shown in the drawings, also embodies, ingeneral, a carriage 7 having an earth-handling unit 8 mounted thereon independing relation thereto, with the carriage 7 being reciprocablelongitudinally of the trusswork 6 to thereby carry the earth-handlingunit 8 back and forth, transversely across the roadway 2.

The earth-handling unit 8, FIG. 2, embodies, in general, a digging unitor ripper 9, a pickup unit 10 and a discharge unit, embodying twoelongated discharge members in the form of belt conveyors 11 and 12. Thedigging unit 9 is operable to tear or loosen subgrade material; thepickup unit 10 is operable to pick up such loosened material; and thedischarge unit l1-12 is operable to discharge the picked up materialoutwardly of the machine I and the roadway 2, as will be discussed ingreater detail presently.

In the arrangement of the machine 1 shown in FIG. 1, vertical supports13 are positioned on opposite sides of the roadway 2 and extendlengthwise thereof, the upper edges of the supports 13 being adapted toreceive rollers 14 on the trusswork 6 to enable the trusswork 6 to bemoved along the sup ports 13.

The carriage 7, FIGS. 1 and 2, includes two horizontally extending,horizontally spaced, substantially parallel outer side rails 15 and 16,and two end plates 17 and 18 extending between and mounted on respectiveopposite ends of the side rails 15 and 16. Each of the end plates 17 and18 has two outwardly projecting, horizontally spaced upper rollers 19mounted on respective opposite ends thereof. The rollers 19 are sodisposed on the end plates 17 and 18 that, when the tion to the outerperipheries of the rings 55-53. The longitudinal edges of the headportions 65 are tapered to a sharp edge to afford cutting edges 67 forcutting into the dirt or other subgrade material to be picked up by thepickup unit 13, as will be discussed in greater detail presently.

Two other supporting frames 63 and 63, FlG. 2, are supported from theauxiliary frame 23, and form the end members of the digging unit 3. Thesupporting frames 63 and 63 are identical to each other in construction.They are also identical in construction to the supporting frames 31 and32 except that the side rails 35 and 36 thereof extend upwardly abovethe top rails 33 and are secured to the lower faces of the side rails 24and 25 by suitable means, such as, welding, to thereby support thesupporting frames 63 and 63 in fixed, downwardly spaced, suspendedposition relative to the auxiliary frame 23. Each of the supportingframes 63 and 63 have rollers and mounts therefor constructed andarranged thereon in the same manner as the rollers 37, 33, 41 and 42 andthe mounts 33, 43, 41 and 42 therefor on the supporting frames 31 and32. These rollers on the supporting frames 63 and 63 in the machine 1rotatably support a substantially cylindrical shaped drum 73 of thedigging unit 3, as will be discussed in greater detail presently.

A plurality of elongated ripper points or cutters 71 are mounted on theperiphery of the drum 73 in longitudinally outwardly projecting relationthereto, FIG. 2. The ripper points 71 are disposed around the peripheryof the drum 73 in substantially equally spaced, helical paths, andafford means for tearing up and loosening the subgrade material to beremoved during operation of the machine 1. The ripper points may be ofany suitable construction, but, preferably, they are substantiallyT-shaped in construction embodying flat heads 72 mounted on elongatedshanks 73, with the heads being substantially diamond shape in crosssection perpendicular to the longitudinal center line of the respectiveshafts 73. Preferably, the heads 72 are of reduced thickness at theirouter peripheral edges to thereby afford cutting edges for assisting incutting into and tearing up the ground during operation of the machine1.

Each of the rollers 37, 33, 41 and 42 mounted on the supporting frames31,32, 63 and 69 has a main body portion 74 at one end thereof, and anenlarged portion, affording a radially outwardly projecting flange 75,at the other end thereof, as shown in FIG. with respect to the roller33.

The rollers 37, 33, 41 and 42 on the supporting frames 31 and 32 arepreferably equally spaced from each other, around the square which theydefine, and they are disposed in such position that when the rotary unit54 is disposed in operative position in the machine 1, the outer edgesof the ends 61 of the end rings 55 and 56 of the rotary unit 54 arejournaled in the rollers 37, 33, 41 and 42 on the supporting frames 31and 32, respectively, with the outer peripheries of the ring ends 61 and62 riding on the outer peripheries of the body portions 74 of therespective group of rollers 37, 33, 41 and 42 in which they arejournaled, and with the flanges 75 on those rollers disposed in abuttingengagement with the adjacent end face of the respective ring ends 61, asshown in FIG. 5, with respect to the roller 33 on the supporting frame32, which is disposed in engagement with the end ring 56. lt will beseen that, with this construction, the rotary unit 54 is rotatablymounted in the supporting frames 31 and 32 for rotation around itslongitudinal axis, and is held by the flanges 75 disposed in abuttingengagement with the respective opposite ends thereof, from axialmovement relative to the auxiliary frame 23.

A sprocket wheel 76 is mounted on the end portion 61 of the end ring 56and is secured thereto by suitable means, such as, welding, between thebody portion 63 of the ring 56 and the adjacent rollers 37, 33, 41 and42. A suitable drive mechanism, such as a motor 77, is mounted on theauxiliary frame 23 above the rotary unit 54. The motor 77 has anothersprocket wheel 73 mounted on the drive shaft 73 thereof, and thesprocket wheel 73 is operatively connected to the sprocket wheel 76 by achain 73 so that, during operation of the machine 1, operation of themotor '17 is effective to drive the sprocket wheel 76 and thereby rotatethe rotary unit 56 around its longitudinal axis.

The drum 73 of the digging unit 3, like the end rings 33 and 36 of thepickup unit 13, embodies two annular end portions 33 and 31 projectingoutwardly from the main body portion 32 thereof. The end portions 33 and31 of the drum 73 are journaled in the rollers 37, 33, 41 and 42 on thesupporting frames 63 and 63, respectively, in the same manner that theend portions 61 of the end rings 33 and 36 are journaled in thesupporting frames 31 and 32, so that when the machine 1 is in completelyassembled condition, the drum 73 is supported by the supporting frames63 and 63 for rotation around its longitudinal axis, and is also heldthereby against longitudinal movement relative thereto.

A sprocket wheel 33 is mounted on the end portion 31 of the drum 73between the body portion 32 thereof and the rollers on the supportingframe 63. A motor 34 is mounted on and supported by the auxiliary frame23 above the drum 73. A sprocket wheel 35 is mounted on the drive shaft36 of the motor 34, and is operatively connected to the sprocket wheel33 on the drum 73 of a chain 37.

With this construction, when the motor 34 is energized, it is effectiveto drive the sprocket wheel 33 through the drive shaft 36, the sprocketwheel 35 and the chain 37, and thereby rotate the drum 73 around itslongitudinal axis in the supporting frames 63 and 63. In the assembledmachine 1, the drum 73 is so disposed relative to the frame 7 that whenthe machine 1 is disposed in operative position, and the drum 73 isrotated by the motor 34, the ripper points 71 projecting downwardly fromthe drum 73 are effective to engage the subgrade material over which thedigging unit 3 is disposed, to thereby tear and loosen this material forsubsequent pickup and the pickup unit 13, and discharge by the dischargeunit 11-12, as will presently be described in greater detail.

The conveyor unit 11 includes a roller 33 which extends between, and isjournaled in the lower end portion of two elongated supporting members33 and 33 suspended from the lower faces of the side rails 24 and 25 ofthe auxiliary carriage 23 in substantially parallel relation to eachother, F16. 2. The upper ends of the members 33 and 33 may be secured tothe respective side rails 24 and 25 by any suitable means, such as,welding. At the other end of the elongated conveyor 11, a roller 31extends between, and is journaled in two side rails 32 and 33 secured toand projecting outwardly from the side rails 35 and 36, respectively, ofthe supporting frame 32 in substantially horizontally extending,parallel relation to each other. A belt 33 is trained around the rollers33 and 31 so that upon rotation of either of the rollers 33 or 31, thebelt 33 is caused to travel around the two rollers.

The conveyor 11, when the rotary unit 54 is disposed in lowered,operative position, is disposed on the longitudinal axis of the rotaryunit 54. The conveyor 11 is of such width and thickness that it isdisposed in inwardly spaced relation to the rotary unit 54 and thesupporting frames 31 and 32. It will be remembered that the right end ofthe conveyor 11, as viewed in FIG. 2, is secured to the supporting frame32. Thus, when the pickup unit 13 is moved upwardly and downwardlyrelative to the auxiliary carriage 23, the conveyor unit 11 pivotsupwardly and downwardly around the interconnection of the roller 33 withthe supporting members 33 and 33.

A sprocket wheel 35 is operatively connected to the roller 33, and amotor 36, for rotating the sprocket wheel 35, is mounted on theauxiliary carriage 23 above the roller 33. A sprocket wheel 37 ismounted on the drive shaft 33 of the motor 36, and is operativelyconnected to the sprocket wheel 35 by a chain 33. Thus, uponenergization of the motor 36 it is effective through the drive shaft 33,the sprocket wheel 37 and the chain 33 to rotate the sprocket 35 andthereby rotate the roller 33 and cause the belt 34 to travel around therollers 33 and 31.

A plurality of identical supporting brackets 133 are mounted on andextend laterally outwardly and downwardly from the side rail 21 of thetrusswork 6, FIGS. 1 and 2. Each of the supporting brackets 100 has anelongated arm 101 which projects laterally outwardly and downwardly awayfrom the supporting rail 21, and is connected at its lower end to an arm102 which projects horizontally inwardly toward the trusswork 6. 1n theassembled machine 1, the arms 102 on the supporting brackets 100 aredisposed in position to support the elongated conveyor 12 verticallybelow the path of travel of the outer end of the conveyor 11 when thecarriage 7 moves back and forth along the trusswork 6. Preferably, theconveyor 12 is of such length that it projects outwardly beyond theroadway 2 being subgraded.

The conveyor 12 may be of any suitable type available on the market,such as, for example, a belt conveyor embodying an elongated supportingframe 103 along which a conveyor belt 104 is movable in upper and lowerpasses 105 and 106, respectively, with the upper pass 105 beingsupported by idler rollers 107 periodically along the length of thesupporting frame 103. A motor 108 is mounted on the trusswork 6, and hasa sprocket wheel 109 operatively connected by a chain 110 to a sprocketwheel 111 on the conveyor 12, so that energization of the motor 108 isoperable to rotate the sprocket 11 1 and thereby operate the conveyor12.

Like the surfacing unit of the aforementioned Bidwell patent, thecarriage 7 and the earth-handling unit 8 is adapted to be movedlengthwise of the trusswork 6, transversely of the road 2, by means ofchains 112, which are driven by a power unit 113, such operation beingdiscussed in greater detail in the Bidwell patent.

The trusswork 6 is capable of being adjusted vertically with respect tothe roadway 2 by means which include vertically extending rods 114mounted in tubular members 115 and arranged to be raised and lowered byrotation of cranks 116, FIG. 1, the rollers 14 being rotatably mountedon the lower ends of the respective rods 114.

In order to accommodate the movement of the earth-handling unit 8 to thedesired slope of the highway 2, the trusswork 6 is hinged intermediatethe ends thereof as at 117. Raising and lowering of the trusswork 6 atthe center thereof is then accomplished by an adjusting assembly whichincludes the bars 118 mounted on the trusswork 6 and through whichextend a threaded rod 119. Nuts 120 engage the threaded rod 119 onopposite sides of the bars 118 so that proper adjustment thereof willchange the angular pitch of the trusswork 6 at either side of the centerthereof, all as more specifically described in the aforementionedBidwell patent. Further adjustment of the trusswork 6 'to achievevariations in the highway contour, may be made by use of the adjustingmeans 12 1.

In the operation of the earth-moving machine 1, it is first disposed inproper position over the roadway 2, with the pins 53 engaged in thelower holes 52 in the supporting frames 31 and 32, to thereby hold thepickup unit in raised position, wherein it is ineffective to engage theground under the auxiliary carriage 23. At this same time, the diggingunit 9 is disposed in such position that the ripper points 71 thereofare engaged with the ground underlying the auxiliary frame 23, to adepth corresponding to the depth of subgrade desired to be removed bythe machine 1, this being controlled by adjustment of the height of thetrusswork 6 above the roadway 2 by adjustment of the supports 14, andadjustment of the contour of the trusswork 6 by adjusting the mechanism118-120 and 121.

With the machine 1 so positioned and adjusted, the motor 84 may beenergized to thereby rotate the drum 70 of the digging unit 9, and thepower unit 113 may be energized to cause the carriage 7, and, therefore,the earth-handling unit 8 to move longitudinally along the trusswork 6,transversely to the roadway 2. Such movement of the earth-handling unit8 is effective to move the digging unit 9 in a direction transverse tothe roadway 2 to thereby cause the ripper points 71 to tear and loosenthe subgrade material over which the digging unit 9 passes. When thecarriage 7 and the earth-handling unit 8 reaches one edge of the highway2, the operation of the power unit is reversed to thereby cause thedigging unit-9 to move in a reverse direction along the trusswork 6.

After the digging unit 9 has traversed the full width of the highway 2,the trusswork 6 may be moved along the supports 4 transversely to thelength of the trusswork 6, to the left, as viewed in FIG. 2. Normally,it is preferred to move the machine 1 along the supports 14 a distanceequal to approximately two-thirds of the length of the drum 70. Afterthis movement of the machine has been accomplished, the carriage 7 mayagain be moved from one side of the highway 2 to the other, with themotor 84 energized to thereby cause the digging unit 9 to tear andloosen the previously unbroken subgrade material. When the carriage 7reaches the other side of the highway, the motor 84 and the power unit113 may again be stopped and the machine again moved forwardly in adirection to the left, as viewed in FIG. 2. Thereafter, the motor 84 mayagain be energized and the power unit 113 may be energized in a reversedirection to return the carriage 7 to the other side of the highway2.

If desired, the motor 84 may be of the reversible type, or othersuitable mechanism, such as a reversing-gear unit, not shown, may beembodied in the drive mechanism for rotating the drum 70, so thatrotation of the drum 70 may be varied with each pass of the carriage 7transversely across the highway 2, so as to cause the ripper points 71to engage the underlying subgrade with a cutting action in the directionof travel of the carriage 7 across the trusswork 6. However, I prefer tohave the drum 70 rotated in one direction during movement of thecarriage 7 in both directions along the trusswork 6, with the driveratio between the motor 83 and the drum 70 being such that theperipheral speed of rotation of the drum 70 is several times, such as,for example, four or five times, the lateral speed of the carriage 7along the trusswork 6.

1n the operation of the machine 1, as soon as it has been movedforwardly along the supports 13 a sufficient distance that the pickupunit 10, when lowered, will engage subgrade material which has beenpreviously loosened by the digging unit 9, without engaging subgradematerial which has not been so loosened, the pickup unit 10 may be movedfrom the raised position, in which it has been held, to loweredposition, as shown in FIG. 2. In this lowered position, the blades 62 ofthe pickup unit 10, at their lowermost point during rotation of therotary unit 54, are substantially at the same height as the heads of theripper points 71 on the digging unit 9, at the lowermost point duringthe rotation thereof. Such lowering of the pickup unit 10 may beaccomplished by removing the pins 53 from the openings 52, turning thehandwheels 54 so as to lower the pickup unit 10 downwardly through thechannel members 47 and 48 into position wherein the openings 51 aredisposed in axial alignment with the corresponding openings 29 and 50,and then reinserting the pins 53 through the openings 51 and thecorresponding, aligned openings 49 and 50. Thereafter, during each passof the carriage 7 and the earth-handling unit 8 longitudinally acrossthe trusswork 6, the motors 84, 77, 96 and 108 all may be energized tothereby operatively drive the drum 70 of the digging unit 9, the rotaryunit 54 of the pickup unit 10, the belt conveyor 11 and the beltconveyor 12, respectively.

With the machine 1 operating in this manner, and being moved forwardlyalong the supporting members 13 after each pass of the carriage 7 andthe earth-handling unit 8 across the highway 2, longitudinally of thetrusswork 6, the ripper points 71 of the digging unit 9 are effective toloosen a new supply of subgrade material during each such pass, and theblades 62 during the rotation of the rotary unit 54 are effective toengage and pick up previously loosened subgrade material. During suchoperation, the rotation of both the drum 70 and the rotary unit 54preferably is in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 3. Withsuch rotation of the rotary unit 54, the apexes of the blades 62afforded by the junction of the respective arms 63 and 64 thereof arethe first portion of each of the blades 62 to engage the subgradematerial, which enhances the cutting action of the blades 62 enteringthis material. As the blades 62 engage the subgrade material, and therotary unit 54 continues to rotate, the material is picked up on thefaces 122 of the heads 65 of the blade 62 and carried around andupwardly to a position, substantially at the top of their rotation,wherein the picked up material falls by gravity from the blade 62 ontothe belt 94 of the then operating belt conveyor ll.

During such operation of the machine II, the belt 94 is moving aroundthe rollers Ml and 91 in a clockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 2, sothat the conveyor Ill is effective to advance the subgrade material,received from the pickup unit to the right, as viewed in FIG. 2, and todump it on the belt 104 of the conveyor 12.

It will be remembered that in the preferred fonn of the machine 1, theconveyor 12 extends longitudinally outwardly past both sides of thehighway 2. With this construction, the motor 10% may be effective todrive the upper pass 105 of the belt 104 of the conveyorllZ either tothe left or to the right, as viewed in FIG. l, and to dump the subgradematerial received from the conveyor Ill outwardly of the supportingmembers 13 disposed at the corresponding left or right sides of thehighway 2. Such dumping, if desired may be directly into a suitablevehicle for hauling the subgrade material away from the road 2.

It will be seen that with the machine 1 constructed, and operating, inthe aforementioned manner, the subgrade material removed thereby mayreadily be removed at the desired slope or crown of the highway 2, thisbeing readily adjusted by use of the adjusting mechanism 118-1120 and1121, and by adjusting the rods 114, at the opposite sides of thehighway 2 to the appropriate lengths.

Also, it will be seen that with the machine ll constructed, andoperating, in the aforementioned manner, the depth to which the subgradematerial is removed may be readily adjusted by raising or lowering therods 114 in the tubular members M5, by turning the cranks 116.

In addition, it will be seen that with the machine ll constructcd, andoperated in the aforementioned manner, the digging unit 9 and the pickupunit 10 are disposed in a practical, end-to-end relation to each other,and are movable, together, with the carriage 7 back and forth across thehighway 2, and, after the initial loosening of subgrade material, aresimultaneously operable so that they are effective to simultaneouslyloosen new subgrade material and pick up previously loosened subgradematerial, respectively.

The modified form of my machine which I have shown in FIGS. 8 and 9operates on the same principle as the-preferred form of the machineillustrated in FIGS. l to 7, inclusive, and like reference numerals havebeen used on like parts and the same reference numerals with the suffixa have been used on parts which are similar, but which have beensubstituted for parts of the preferred form of my invention. All of thechanges made in the modified form of my invention over the preferredform as shown are embodied in the rotary unit S -lla supported by theauxiliary carriage 23.

It will be noted that the changes made in the modified form of myinvention comprise the following, namely, that the rotary unit 54acomprises a plurality of spaced elongated blades 62a mounted on therings 55-59 in preferably substantially straight helical paths, ratherthan the serpentine, back and forth path of the blade 62 in themachine 1. The blades 62a preferably have the same cross-sectional shapeas the blades 62 and are effective to pick up and dump subgradematerial, and the like, upon rotation of the rotary unit 52a in the samemanner that the blades 62 operate upon rotation of the rotary unit 54.

It will be seen that the present invention affords a novel earth-movingmachine by which subgrade material may be removed from highway surfaces,and the like, in a substan tially continuous operation, with thematerial removed being continuously dumped laterally outwardly of thesurface from which it is being removed.

Also, it will be seen that the present invention affords an earth-movingmachine, which is well adapted for subgrading operations, and the like,and which is practical and efficient in operation and which may bereadily and economically produced commercially.

Thus, while I have illustrated and described the preferred embodimentsof the present invention, it is to be understood that these are capableof variation and modification, and I therefore do not wish to be limitedto the precise details set forth, but desire to avail myself of suchchanges and alterations as fall within the purview of the followingclaims.

lclaim:

ll. An earth-moving machine comprising a. an elongated trusswork adaptedto extend transversely across an elongated surface to be subgraded,

b. means for moving said trusswork longitudinally along such a surfacein a direction transverse to the length of said trusswork,

c. a carriage mounted on and supported by said trusswork,

d. means for moving said carriage back and forth along said trusswork,

e. digging means mounted on said carriage for loosening up subgradematerial,

f. pickup means mounted on said carriage for picking up subgradematerial, and

g. discharge means mounted on said carriage in position to receive suchsubgrade material from said pickup means and discharge it away from saidsupporting means, h. said pickup means comprising 1. annular means 8..having a center axis, and b. being rotatably mounted on said carriage l.for rotation around said axis, and 2. with said axis being disposedtransverse to the length of said trusswork in position to be disposed insubstantially aligned relation to the length of such a surface, and 2.elongated blades extending around the periphery of said annular means ina path extending along said axis in radially outwardly spaced relationthereto, for picking up subgrade material from such a surface duringrotation of said annular means around said axis. 2. An earth-movingmachine as defined in claim I, and in which a. said discharge meanscomprises 1. an elongated conveyor disposed in and extending outwardlyfrom said pickup means for discharging outwardly of said pickup meanssubgrade material picked up by said pickup means, and 2. anotherelongated conveyor mounted on said trusswork and extendinglongitudinally therealong to a posi tion disposed outwardly to an end ofsaid trusswork in position to a. receive such subgrade materialdischarged by said first mentioned conveyor and b. discharge saidreceived subgrade material outwardly past an end of said trusswork. 3.An earth-moving machine as defined in claim 2, and in which a. saiddigging means comprises 1. a drum rotatably mounted on said carriage,and 2. cutters projecting from the periphery of said drum in position toengage such subgrade material, and b. said drum and said annular meansare I. mounted on said carriage in axial alignment with each other, and2. are simultaneously rotatable relativeto said carriage. 4. Anearth-moving machine as defined in claim 3, and in which a. saidconveyors comprise elongated belt conveyors, and b. drive means aremounted 1. on said carriage for driving said first mentioned conveyor,said drum and said annular means, and

2. on said trusswork for driving said second mentioned conveyor.

5. An earth-moving machine comprising a. supporting means,

b. digging means rotatably mounted on said supporting means forloosening up subgrade material,

c. pickup means rotatably mounted on said supporting means in axialalignment with said digging means for picking up subgrade material, and

d. an elongated conveyor mounted in said pickup means in position toreceive such subgrade material from said pickup means and discharge itaway from said supporting means,

e. said digging means, pickup means and conveyor being operativelyconnected together for movement as a unit horizontally relative to saidsupporting means.

6. An earth-moving machine comprising a. an elongated trusswork adaptedto extend transversely across an elongated surface to be subgraded,

b. means for moving said trusswork longitudinally along such a surfacein a direction transverse to the length of said trusswork,

c. a carriage mounted on and supported by said trusswork,

d. means for moving said carriage back and forth along said trusswork,

e. digging means rotatably mounted on said carriage for loosening upsubgrade material,

f. pickup means rotatably mounted on said carriage in axial alignmentwith said digging means for picking up subgrade material, and

g. discharge means mounted on said carriage in position to receive suchsubgrade material from said pickup means and discharge it away from saidsupporting means.

it i k i

1. An earth-moving machine comprising a. an elongated trusswork adaptedto extend transversely across an elongated surface to be subgraded, b.means for moving said trusswork longitudinally along such a surface in adirection transverse to the length of said trusswork, c. a carriagemounted on and supported by said trusswork, d. means for moving saidcarriage back and forth along said trusswork, e. digging means mountedon said carriage for loosening up subgrade material, f. pickup meansmounted on said carriage for picking up subgrade material, and g.discharge means mounted on said carriage in position to receive suchsubgrade material from said pickup means and discharge it away from saidsupporting means, h. said pickup means comprising
 1. annular means a''.having a center axis, and b''. being rotatably mounted on said carriage1''. for rotation around said axis, and 2''. with said axis beingdisposed transverse to the length of said trusswork in position to bedisposed in substantially aligned relation to the length of such asurface, and
 2. elongated blades extending around the periphery of saidannular means in a path extending along said axis in radially outwardlyspaced relation thereto, for picking up subgrade material from such asurface during rotation of said annular means around said axis. 2.elongated blades extending around the periphery of said annular means ina path extending along said axis in radially outwardly spaced relationthereto, for picking up subgrade material from such a surface duringrotation of said annular means around said axis.
 2. An earth-movingmachine as defined in claim 1, and in which a. said discharge meanscomprises
 2. another elongated conveyor mounted on said trusswork andextending longitudinally therealong to a position disposed outwardly toan end of said trusswork in position to a''. receive such subgradematerial discharged by said first mentioned conveyor and b''. dischargesaid received subgrade material outwardly past an end of said trusswork.2. cutters projecting from the periphery of said drum in position toengage such subgrade material, and b. said drum and said annular meansare
 2. are simultaneously rotatable relative to said carriage.
 2. onsaid trusswork for driving said second mentioned conveyor.
 3. Anearth-moving machine as defined in claim 2, and in which a. said diggingmeans comprises
 4. An earth-moving machine as defined in claim 3, and inwhich a. said conveyors comprise elongated belt conveyors, and b. drivemeans are mounted
 5. An earth-moving machine comprising a. supportingmeans, b. digging means rotatably mounted on said supporting means forloosening up subgrade material, c. pickup means rotatably mounted onsaid supporting means in axial alignment with said digging means forpicking up subgrade material, and d. an elongated conveyor mounted insaid pickup means in position to receive such subgrade material fromsaid pickup means and discharge it away from said supporting means, e.said digging means, pickup means and conveyor being operativelyconnected together for movement as a unit horizontally relative to saidsupporting means.
 6. An earth-moving machine comprising a. an elongatedtrusswork adapted to extend transversely across an elongated surface tobe subgraded, b. means for moving said trusswork longitudinally alongsuch a surface in a direction transverse to the length of saidtrusswork, c. a carriage mounted on and supported by said trusswork, d.means for moving said carriage back and forth along said trusswork, e.digging means rotatably mounted on said carriage for loosening upsubgrade material, f. pickup means rotatably mounted on said carriage inaxial alignment with said digging means for picking up subgradematerial, and g. discharge means mounted on said carriage in position toreceive such subgrade material from said pickup means and discharge itaway from said supporting means.